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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29880561">Core Pride</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bakuhatsuu/pseuds/Bakuhatsuu'>Bakuhatsuu</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Rin and Shiemi Love Stories in Assiah [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Ao no Exorcist | Blue Exorcist</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Accidental Kissing, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cuddling &amp; Snuggling, Demon Okumura Rin, Exwire(s) (Ao no Exorcist), F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, HEA, Idiots in Love, Love Confessions, Minor Moriyama Shiemi/Okumura Rin, Mutual Pining, Pining, Protective Okumura Rin, Requited Love, Rin Can Control His Flames, RinShi - Freeform, True Cross Academy, at the end</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 03:01:45</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,916</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29880561</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bakuhatsuu/pseuds/Bakuhatsuu</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After discovering Rin is the son of Satan and inherited his father’s demon powers, his classmates at True Cross Academy have turned against him. To bring everyone closer together to work as a team in fighting demons, the principal Mephisto Pheles has arranged a mandatory sleepover for the students with Okumura Yukio and Kirigakure Shura to supervise. The night doesn’t go as planned when Ghouls break into the school and wreak havoc.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Moriyama Shiemi/Okumura Rin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Rin and Shiemi Love Stories in Assiah [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2200134</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Core Pride</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/CelestiaKnight/gifts">CelestiaKnight</a>, <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlowerOfMayhem/gifts">FlowerOfMayhem</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Thank you for your support, CelestiaKnight and FlowerOfMayhem. I'm gifting this fic to you two!</p><p>Also, a huge thank you to my wonderful beta, LadyofReylo!</p><p>💙💙💙</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  
</p><p>“My first sleepover! I’m so excited!” Shiemi exclaims happily. The blonde girl beams with joy as she steps into the classroom she is supposed to spend the night in with her comrades. All the tables and chairs are pushed to the back of the room. White mattresses are lined up on the floor, ready to be used.</p><p>Izumo stops in the threshold of the doorway behind Shiemi with an annoyed expression on her face. A bag with her stuff is slung over one shoulder.</p><p>“This is going to be a long night,” she sighs.</p><p>“Kamiki-san, do you want to sleep on a mattress next to me?” Shiemi asks sweetly, turning to face her.</p><p>“Why? I hate you,” Izumo asks, not even bothering to give a glance in her direction.</p><p>“Well, um…” Shiemi’s voice falters as she thinks of what to say. “That doesn’t matter to me. Even if you hate me, I still like you a lot.” Shiemi gives her a bright smile. “I’ve never been to a sleepover before and I’ve <em>really</em> been looking forward to this night.”</p><p>“Fine. I guess we can sleep next to each other but don’t talk to me. You’re annoying,” Izumo shrugs indifferently, stepping into the classroom. Shiemi swiftly follows.</p><p>Shiemi’s eyes roam around to take in the classroom and the people who have arrived before her and Izumo. Ryuji is standing with Konehomaru and Renzo near the windows at the opposite end of the room where Rin is left all alone. His familiar Kuro is sitting on his shoulder.</p><p>Shiemi feels her heart fall a little for her friend. Rin is a nice guy. He doesn’t deserve the discrimination he faces every day simply for being the son of Satan and inheriting his powers. No one treats Yukio differently since it was revealed the twins are half-demon half-human.</p><p>“Oi, Miwa-san! Shima-san!” Rin yells after his classmates. “Do you want to sleep next to me? There’s lots of space over here,” he adds, using a hand gesture to show the empty mattresses in front of him.</p><p>Konekomaru and Renzo cower back against the windows, both of them hesitant on what to say and how to tell him no.</p><p>“No, they won’t! Can’t you see they’re afraid of you? They don’t want to be friends with a demon!” Ryuji spits.</p><p>Rin flinches. “Hey, now! There’s no need to be afraid of me.”</p><p>“You are a ticking bomb just waiting to blow up again. Those blue flames hurt people!” Ryuji grits his teeth.</p><p>“I don’t want to hurt anyone. I’m training to control my flames. I need you to believe in me!” Rin’s hands are formed into fists at his sides, shaking angrily.</p><p>“Ignore them. They should be ashamed of themselves,” Izumo says while sliding her bag off her shoulder and puts it on a mattress beside him. Rin relaxes his hands before he looks at the dark purple-haired girl with surprise.</p><p>“Tiny Brows?”</p><p>Out of all people, he never expected her to be the one to defend him.</p><p>A sudden anger flashes across Izumo’s face. She forms a fist with her hand. “How many times have I told you to stop calling me that?! My name is Izumo Kamiki!” she huffs.</p><p>“Hi, Rin. Ready for tonight?” Shiemi asks innocently, nervously fidgeting with her fingers. She’s always nervous when she’s near him. He just has that effect on her.</p><p>“S-Shiemi!” Rin blushes.</p><p>“Do you mind if I sleep here?” she asks carefully, nodding to the empty mattress next to him.</p><p>“Uh, n-no,” he stutters. Shiemi sleeping next to him? What a dream. Her angelic face is the last thing he will see before dozing off in the night and the first thing he wakes up to in the morning.</p><p>“Shiemi, come join us!”</p><p>All three Exwires whip their head in the direction of the voice to see Renzo waving to Shiemi.</p><p>Izumo picks at her nails and rolls her red eyes. This evening is already a bother.</p><p>Rin feels his blood slowly starting to boil. They will do anything to ostracize him. He won’t stand by and watch as they try to take Shiemi away from him too. The pupils in his blue eyes become red and slit, his prominent canine teeth turn into full-fledged fangs, ears develop into long elf-like ears, two horn-like blue flames float above his head. He opens his mouth to protest but Shiemi beats him to it.</p><p>“No thanks. I’m good here,” she smiles apologetically.</p><p>Rin relaxes his body and turns back into his human form. His tail swings calmy back and forth. Kuro jumps down from his shoulder and lands solidly on the floor. The <a href="https://aonoexorcist.fandom.com/wiki/Cat_S%C3%ADdhe">Cat Sídhe</a> rubs affectionately against his leg before he goes to lie down on Rin’s pillow.</p><p>“Alright, listen up!” Kirigakure’s voice booms through the classroom making everyone quiet down. She stands in front of the chalkboard with her hands firmly placed on her hips. Yukio is quietly observing her. No one even noticed the teachers arriving.</p><p>“You all need to learn how to work together as a team. No one fights demons alone. It’s too dangerous and reckless,” Kirigakure continues.</p><p>Yukio steps forward. “We’re going to divide you into groups. Kirigakure and I have released fifty Coal Tars all over the school. Your job is to find them and exorcise them. The group who gets the most demons, wins.”</p><p>“Wait, hold up. You just released a bunch of Coal Tar from Gehenna? And now you expect us to get rid of them? How is that supposed to bring us closer together?” Ryuji interrupts and yells into the classroom.</p><p>“That’s for me to know and you to find out.” Yukio lifts a hand to push his glasses up his nose. The glass reflects in the light, momentarily shielding his eyes.</p><p>“Moriyama-san, you go with Okumura-san. Suguro-san goes with Kamiki-san and Miwa-san, you go with Shima-san. Is that clear?” Kirigakure says. When no one disagrees, she continues. “Good, now go.”</p><p>“But you haven’t even said what the winning team <em>wins</em>,” Renzo complains.</p><p>“I said <em>go</em>!” Kirigakure repeats while narrowing her eyes. Renzo bolts for the door with Konekomaru following close behind him, telling him to wait for his teammate.</p><p>The four remaining Exwires team up with their assigned partner and walk out the door to explore the rest of the school.</p><p>Shiemi and Rin walk in silence down a long hall, eyes on the watch for any movement. Izumo and Ryuji choose to go in the opposite direction. The sound of their footsteps fades by the second. Renzo and Konekomaru are long gone.</p><p>Rin hasn’t been alone with Shiemi since the day they were searching for a ghost in an amusement park. As he’s quietly walking beside her, he can’t help but feel the butterflies in his stomach. Should he say something? What should he say?</p><p>You’re the most beautiful girl I have ever seen? Please, go on a date with me? I think I’m in love with y—</p><p>The light starts to flicker above their heads until it completely goes out, leaving them in darkness. Outside, the moon is shining through the windows, giving enough light to see where they are going.</p><p>“W-What happened to the lights?” Shiemi stutters, hugging her arms to her chest.</p><p>“Maybe Yukio and Kirigakure turned off the lights as a challenge? Coal Tars are attracted to dark places after all,” Rin wonders, oblivious to Shiemi being a bit spooked by this.</p><p>A Coal Tar flies swiftly through the air, catching the blonde girl’s attention instantly.</p><p>“I think you’re right,” Shiemi agrees. “Look! There’s one!” she exclaims while pointing her finger after the level one demon. Rin’s eyes follow her finger and spot the small demon.</p><p>“I got this!” he says and grabs his double-edged sword from behind his back. The Coal Tar, however, is faster and flies away before Rin gets a chance to draw his sword.</p><p>“It’s getting away,” Shiemi says and starts running after the level one demon. She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a small piece of paper with a rough sketch of a Magic Circle and summons her Greenman. Nee appears and she catches her familiar in the palm of her hands.</p><p>The Coal Tar flies into a random classroom and vanishes from her sight. Shiemi stops in the doorway. The classroom is darker than the hallway and it gives off an eerie vibe. Something tells her she shouldn’t go inside but maybe it’s just her mind playing tricks on her.</p><p>Rin comes up behind her, panting slightly from running.</p><p>“Did you get it?” he asks.</p><p>Shiemi shakes her head. “No, it flew in here.” She stares into the dark classroom.</p><p>Rin slowly walks past her, stepping over the threshold into the sombre classroom. His hands clench around the sword as his eyes strain to see in the dark. In one fluid movement, he draws the Kouma Sword, restoring his demon powers. Blue flames ignite and spread all over his body.</p><p>He steps carefully further into the classroom, using his blue flames to shine his way through the darkness. Shiemi follows closely behind him, not wanting to be left alone in the hallway.</p><p>A snarling sound makes the hair at the back of Shiemi’s neck rise. She spins on her heel to face the door but there’s nothing to be found.</p><p>“Rin!” Shiemi squeals. She puts Nee on her shoulder before she runs the rest of the way to Rin and hugs him from behind.</p><p>“Hey, now. What’s wrong?” he asks, eyes widening a bit. The sudden closeness makes his heart beat faster. For a moment, he fears she can feel it. Warmth creeps up his neck as he feels himself getting flustered.</p><p>“I heard something,” she mutters frightened. Shiemi lets go of Rin and takes a small step back when he turns to face her. The blue flames illuminate her face in the dark. She can feel the heat from the fire but it doesn’t burn her. Rin will never hurt her. She knows that.</p><p>A shadowy figure appears in the doorway, blocking the only way out. The rotting animal leaves no trace of doubt of what kind of demon this is. Shiemi gasps in horror at the Ghoul in front of them. Even though it’s only a level one demon, it’s still a frightening creature to look at. Ghouls might be slow demons and won’t feast on humans but they’re aggressive and not to be underestimated.</p><p>“A Ghoul?!” Rin mutters more to himself.</p><p>How did a Ghoul get into the school? It’s not supposed to be here in Assiah.</p><p>Shiemi gently grabs her familiar from her shoulder and holds the little Greenman in the palm of her hand. The paper she used to summon her familiar with, is crumbled up in her other hand. Out of the corner of her eye, she can tell Rin is positioned with the Kouma Sword, ready to strike.</p><p>“Nee-chan, bring out some Tengu Hornbeam!” she tells her familiar. It worked the first time they encountered a Ghoul. Unfortunately, this Ghoul is different from the last and acts faster than Nee can produce protective branches that shield from any attacks.</p><p>The Ghoul jumps, aiming for Shiemi’s direction and manages to rip the paper to shreds making Nee disappear before her eyes.</p><p>“Nee-chan!” Shiemi cries out loud before getting hit by the Ghoul and sent flying into the wall.</p><p>“Shiemi, are you okay?” Rin asks before stepping in front of the demon to stop it from chasing after his classmate. He raises the Kouma Sword and charges with full speed to attack.</p><p>“I’m okay!” she assures through gritted teeth.</p><p>Shiemi brushes herself off before getting back on her feet. She idly watches Rin fighting for a few seconds before shaking her head. This is not the reason why she wanted to become an exorcist.</p><p>Rin is a strong and brave guy. He wields the Kouma Sword like a proper Knight despite only being an Exwire. She admires that about him. Her Tamer abilities can only get her so far. The Ghoul ripped the paper with the Magic Circle and she doesn’t have an extra to summon her Greenman but that doesn’t mean she’ll stand by and watch Rin do all the work. Exorcists never work alone after all.</p><p>Shiemi finally snaps out of it when Rin is thrown into a wall.</p><p>“Rin!”</p><p>He doesn’t respond. The Ghoul snarls as it makes its way to Rin.</p><p>While the Ghoul is distracted, Shiemi runs further into the classroom. She takes the chair closest to her and lifts it above her head before throwing it across the room, aiming for the level one demon. The chair hits the demon in the head and it immediately turns its attention on her.</p><p>Shiemi quickly grabs another chair to throw while the Ghoul stalks closer. She pushes tables and chairs to block its path but it only buys her a few seconds. Rin is still lying on the floor. The blue flames are blazing wildly all over his body.</p><p>Within seconds, Shiemi finds herself cornered. The Ghoul grabs her by her ankle and hoists her into the air making her let out a shriek of surprise.</p><p>“Shiemi!” Rin exclaims. He forces himself to his feet, ignoring the banging in his head. “Let her go!” Rin rages, grabbing his double-edged sword. He wastes no time in making a break for it while raising the Kouma Sword above his head, shoving it into the Ghoul. It immediately bursts into blue flames and lets go of Shiemi.</p><p>Rin instantly leaps into the air and swiftly catches Shiemi bride style. She clings to him even after he’s landed safely back on the ground. The blue flames extinguish and they are once again engulfed in darkness. Rin carefully lets Shiemi down but the moment her feet hits the ground, she trips into him, accidentally kissing his lips.</p><p>Shiemi’s body immediately tenses up from embarrassment.</p><p>“Oh, I—I’m sorry!” Shiemi squeals, hiding her face in her hands even though he can’t see her. Her first kiss with a boy and it happened this way.</p><p>“I—it’s fine,” Rin stammers. A rush of warmth creeps up his neck and he knows he’s blushing. Somehow, he’s grateful for the darkness hiding his flustered state. He can still feel the ghost of her sweet lips on his skin.</p><p>“Uh… Would you mind holding my hand until we get back? I’m a little afraid of the dark…” Shiemi says innocently.</p><p>“Y-your hand?”</p><p>“Yeah…”</p><p>The Coal Tar that brought them into the classroom, to begin with, is long forgotten. Shiemi feels Rin’s warm hand find hers in the dark, fingers softly interlacing together. They walk hand in hand back down the dark hall with the moon watching over them through the windows.</p><p>—•—</p><p>“Umm… Rin?” Shiemi whispers softly in the dark, mindful not to wake their classmates. After getting back, Shiemi and Rin quickly found out that they were not the only ones who were attacked by a Ghoul. The teachers don’t know who is behind the attack or who let the demons into Assiah.</p><p>“Shiemi?” Rin asks confused, rubbing his eyes sleepily.</p><p>“I’m too scared to sleep alone. Can I sleep with you?”</p><p>“I—I…” Rin is too flustered to think straight. Shiemi wants to sleep in his arms? Is he dreaming? “S-sure,” he finds himself saying.</p><p>Shiemi pushes her sheets aside and walks the few steps over the floor. She crawls under the warmth sheets and hugs Rin, draping her arm over his stomach. His eyes widen when he feels her breasts press against his chest.</p><p>“Is it better now?” Rin asks, hesitantly placing his arms protectively around her small frame.</p><p>“Yes, I feel so much safer with you,” she sighs contently.</p><p>And so they lie there, wrapped in each other’s arms at night. Shiemi listens to Rin’s steady heartbeat. He’s warm and comfy making all her worries disappear. Some of her blonde hair tickles his nose but he doesn’t mind.</p><p>She smells like strawberries and roses and he can’t stop inhaling her sweet scent. Rin can count on his fingers the many times he tried to tell Shiemi how he felt but something got in the way. Just the thought of her smile and sweet persona makes his heart flutter. He is utterly mesmerized by her.</p><p>“I like you.” Rin blurts out the words out before he has a chance to properly think. Oh no. He didn’t mean to say that out loud. “I—I mean I didn’t…” he stutters, getting embarrassed.</p><p>Shiemi lifts her head from his chest to look at him. “You do?” she beams, her green eyes staring into his blue orbs. “I like you too,” she blushes.</p><p>“Really?”</p><p>She nods slowly and inches closer to his face. Rin quickly catches on to what she wants. Their noses bump together, eyes closing before their lips meet in a sweet kiss. Shiemi moves her lips intact to Rin’s lips, feeling butterflies erupt in her stomach. His lips are soft and gentle, careful not to rush anything.</p><p>“Could you two shut up? Some of us are trying to sleep,” Izumo grumbles beside them. They both ignore her, too caught up in their own pink bubble of love. Shiemi giggles against Rin’s lips, beaming with happiness. She kisses him one last time before letting her head rest on his chest again.</p><p>The pair falls asleep in each other’s embrace, knowing all is well as long as they have one another.</p>
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